It’s been a long time since I’ve reviewed anything, things have been busy the past month or so but it’s time to get back into full swing. We’ll start with an old game that got a facelift. Gothic 3, or as it’s now called.. Gothic 3: Forsaken Gods edition (if you got the newest version) and it tries to update things from the 2006 RPG. Anywho.. let’s get into the review..

OVERVIEW

Gothic 3: Forsaken Gods is an “enhanced” version of the classic 2006 RPG. It introduced a new combat system, new armor, etc. Everything you’d like to see in a revamp, along with a new engine to top it all off. For old fans of the series, it seems like it’d bee a good game to pick up to relive the moments of Gothic 3 again. For the new guy (like me) Gothic 3 was something that people spoke highly about. Gothic 3: FG tried to bring back the old Gothic gameplay without ruining the old style feel. Or so we think. From the start, the game seems cool. The nameless hero wakes up with one goal; reunite Myrtana from a war between the humans and the orcs. The land has been drenched in war for a while now and it’s up to you to stop it. Of course, you’re weak and barely escaped death a few days before. But hey, that’s how most RPGs start.

After about three minutes, the game gets confusing. The quest log interface sucks. Horribly. The quest log doesn’t tell you where you can find people, it only says vague things like “collect taxes from these people.” Well that’s fine, but could you tell me WHERE these people are? The quest log system sucks, to say the least. However, things aren’t always based off the quest log. And that’s where I go to next.

GAMEPLAY

The Gothic series has tried to replicate The Elder Scrolls since day one, without trying to look like too much like a copy. Now that’s fine, because imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. But Gothic 3: FG just ruins everything it touches. The combat is smooth, I’ll give it that. The animations are excellent, (although because the impact sounds are virtually nonexistant I never figure out if I hit my target until I see his health go down) but the combat appeal stops there. This game is incredibly difficult. The combat is infuriating at times. So much so I quit playing at some points. The monster encounters on the road are so unbalanced that it made me furious. One guy (me) versus four dragonfly things that are faster and can poison you to death in a few seconds? No thanks.

The character development is interesting. You start off with basic skills such as swordsmanship, hunting (archery) and so on. As you progress, you learn from characters upgrades for each skill. It’s not that user friendly, but nothing about this game truly is.

GRAPHICS

The graphics engine is excellent. The textures and models are varied and work obviously went into them. The landscapes are beautiful and the world truly does come alive. At some points, the textures can get bland but that doesn’t happen very often, and when it does it’s hardly noticeable. The one downside to the graphics engine is the fact that every few minutes when walking into a new areas, it lags for a few seconds. This gets annoying, and even on my rig it lagged a little. If your computer sucks, you don’t want to bother with this game at all. It’ll just destroy the computer.

ENVIRONMENT

Like I said before, the landscape is varied and looks beautiful. Mountains, lakes, forests, caves. It’s all here and varied. Nothing appears to be a copy of anything. That’s always nice. However, the few towns in the extremely hostile world are small and void of life. The occasional person you see is a generic “Blacksmith” or “Miner” and you can’t interact with them. It’s sad, really.

WHAT’S GOOD

Interesting world, filled with random encounters that keep you on your toes, and a plethora of loot and weapons await you. It’s fun for people who like to pick up everything they see (considering you have unlimited inventory space) and sell it all. Combat is challenging, but at some parts too challenging. The graphics are excellent, and the towns are all unique. All in all, it’s more of an environment game than an RPG. If you must absolutely need an RPG, it’s your choice, but for most of us we need something more.

WHAT’S CRAP

The game tried to be something good, unfortunately it just didn’t get there. Frustrating combat, bad interfaces and an uninteresting story screw this game over. That’s probably why this review is my shortest ever. The game just isn’t fun to play. It sucks. Because it seems cool for a bit then just gets crappy.